


All the Works and Days of Hand

by Sookiestark



Series: Twelve Days of Westerosi Christmas [5]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-30
Updated: 2018-01-29
Packaged: 2019-02-24 01:38:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13202964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sookiestark/pseuds/Sookiestark
Summary: Roslin Frey Tully waits for her husband to be returned to her at Riverrun. Edmure Tully returns home to Riverrun after winter comes for House Frey.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a mix between the show and the books sooo.....
> 
> I wrote a shorter version of this story awhile back and I really loved Roslin and Edmure because they are interesting characters in difficult situations. 
> 
> I named it after a line from The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock, which of course is a reference to Hesiod's work.
> 
> This is will be a three part peice that is already mostly written.

Lady Roslin Frey Tully fills her days with work. Not just lady’s work with needle and thread, Lady Tully does all the work around Riverrun from spinning wool to making candles, to helping with the last harvest of peas, if necessary. She is industrious, not lazy. At first, the staff at Riverrun had not trusted her, but with her hard work and willingness to pitch in and help where necessary, she has started to win them over.

Roslin Frey was lucky to be born pretty. Pretty meant valuable. She could be married off and married well, a higher social standing for House Frey, a good match. Lady Tully of Riverrun is not the Queen in the North, but it is still much more than she had hoped for. Lucky for Roslin, she was also smart.

Lady Roslin is known to wake early and walk the ramparts. While walking, she looks to the North where the mists burn off the land last. She waits for him or his body to be returned to her. His body has not come and neither does he.. So, she fills her days with work. After all, there is much to do as the Lady of Riverrun. The Riverlands have been ravaged for the last few years and now winter has come. Many will starve or freeze to death. In the past, Riverrun has been a sanctuary for the smallfolk during winter. She means to have enough food to get them through this winter, as well.

She remembers kissing her husband softly in their room on the night of their wedding, wondering if this would be the last time she would kiss her husband. She still hopes to kiss him again. Though as each day passes, she thinks the likelihood lessens. 

She has her brother Olyvar to keep her company at Riverrun. Her father had locked him in his room the night of the Wedding, since he had resisted his father’s plan. Olyvar had been Robb Stark’s squire and had held his King in his regard. Their father had threatened to have him killed, but kinslaying was a crime Walder Frey would not commit. At least there was one crime, he would not commit. There were so many he would. Their father was an ill tempered man.

Olyvar helps her in their grief. He has lost a King worth fighting for, strong and true, what Kings of old were like. When Lord Frey released Roslin, he allowed her to bring her brother from his room to help her rule in his stead at Riverrun. To appease the Riverlands, there is still a Tully in Riverrun with her son and her brother. But Father whispered to her if she disobeyed him, he would have her beat. Lady of Riverrun or not, she was still his daughter.

At first, the servants of Riverrun did not trust her but she took to winning them over as much as how to survive the upcoming winter. She did with kindness and respect and hard work. Whether it was planting or salting, or fixing the loom, Roslin helped with the work. 

She planted peas and beans, since she could get several crops in in the coming before winter. The fields around Riverrun were all worked and planted. She brought in coneys in hutches in one of the yards at Riverrun. A rabbit can feed a man as well as a cow or a chicken and they take less to care for and breed in abundance. 

She is sure that the lords will mock Riverrun to learn their Lady breeds rabbits and plants peas. What Queen Cersei Baratheon must say about her and her simpler ways? But she means to get as many of her people through the winter as possible. She has the guards taking turns catching fish in the river, bass, catfish, pike, salmon to be salted and dried to last until spring. Every soldier has his shift on the dock by the river. She knows there are some that grumble that they are swordsmen, not fishermen. 

Roslin makes sure they see her out on the docks everyday where she can thank them and tell them that they do this for her and her people. She teases them lightly and learns each of their names. It is not that hard to learn a little about everyone. She starts to care about their health and their families. The household of Riverrun is her family now. 

She realizes how much they care for her when she gives birth to her son. Roslin labored for the greater part of the day, but she was told by most that the birth was relatively easy. Afterward, the household staff brought little gifts, a small knitted blankets, a honeycomb in a jar, salts with roses and lavender for her bath. 

She named her son, Axel. It is an old Tully name and the name of the man who built Riverrun. She hopes her son is as great a man. He is a sweet thing with bright blue eyes and red hair like his father. As the days pass, he is one of her greatest joys and rarely does he leave her arms. 

Roslin understands the risk and danger to her son. She will keep him safe and she has the moat filled with water, in case anyone means to do them harm. 

The days grow colder. Roslin Tully knows soon the small folk will come into Riverrun and she must be able to feed them. Her brother William, a Maester in the Vale, writes regularly to her and Olyvar and tells her of new ways to keep the stores. Every day, she hopes for another day of autumn fair weather, another week to fill the stores more. 

As the days pass, she watches Olyvar grow his voice back from months of being locked away. He has started flirting with girls, small glances and smiles, showing them his skill with a sword. Of course, none of the girls are suitable, but it is nice to see him have interest in anything other than what their father did to his King. She teases him at dinner that maybe she might see a winter wedding. 

Perhaps, Father will let him marry but only, if he shows his loyalty to House Frey and his obedience to their father. 

It is a brisk cold winter day when they see the party approach. At first, she wonders if it is the small folk beginning to come to the safety of the keep. As they grow closer, it seems to be a party, mostly made of women and some children. There is a thin grey man who leads the group. When he gets to the moat, he calls out to open the gate to the Lord of Riverrun. 

Roslin meets him in the yard with Axel. When he crosses the drawbridge with wagons and women, her eyes settle on her husband. Two years of imprisonment have not been kind. He is thin and tired, pale. His thick red hair is mostly grey. She does not care and embraces him as soon as he is close. 

Edmure Tully smiles and holds her tightly in his arms. She introduces him to his son and extends him the child to hold. Edmure declines, saying he is weary and needs rest. Roslin sees how his hands shake and knows he is not well. 

The first night he returns, they have dinner in the hall, for her sisters, unmarried ,and widows, granddaughters, and children. Of course, no boy old enough to be in that hall and drink wine stands still, but there are babes. None with the name Frey. Except for Olyvar.

It seems that the Lord of Riverrun has brought the women of House Frey to sort out who to keep hostages and who to marry to his bannermen. Some begged him to take them with them, afraid to be at the Twins with no men. Some long to be returned to their homes. Edmure says he will sort it out on the morrow. 

After the feast, they return to their chambers. Lord Edmure seems uncomfortable. She asks him what happened to her father and her family.

All he says is, “Winter came for House Frey.”

 

Ravens are sent out to the loyal houses that Lord Edmure has returned. She wonders what the Lannisters might do. Olyvar takes some men and return to the Twins. He is the oldest male of the line. It is his. He seems unsure as he leaves. Olyvar hugs Roslin, fiercely. After all, it has only been them for years in their grief and fear. He rides off to claim the Twins with a dozen men, before the sun sets.

As they dress for bed, he asks her, “Where is my Uncle?”

“We buried him in the river, like your father and his father. Marq Piper, Olyvar, Lord Blackwood and his sons that Jaime Lannister did not take all helped put him to rest.”

 

Edmure seems uncomfortable talking about both men in the same breath. It is a reminder of how he betrayed his uncle, he betrayed Riverrun. She does not see it as betrayal. Roslin sees it as survival. Jaime Lannister had threatened to harm their son and Edmure had done what fathers do, whatever they can to keep their children safe. At night, she has whispered stories to Axel of how much his father loved him. Without ever meeting him, he was willing to give his castle and titles up for him to be safe. 

Her father would not have done that. She does not think many men would and so it makes Edmure Tully more precious to her. 

 

She remembers her husband's gentleness and his gallantry how he wiped her tears with his thumbs and kissed her gently. “I will not hurt you my lady. Do not be afraid." She was so afraid for him and what would happen to all off them. She is still afraid. 

 

He comes to her bed. It is their bed, but they have never slept in it together. At the Twins, they pulled him from her bed, after he had consummated it. Underneath the blankets of their bed, he is naked. She can feel his bones and he sighs against her, “Roslin, I would dream of you every night and our child. I would pray that you would be safe. That he would be well.” 

“Shh.. we are safe now. We are here together and we will never part now.” 

“We never did this right,” he says, as he pushes her on the mattress. 

He helps her off with the night dress. He puts his mouth on hers, kissing her fiercely. He kisses her body, everywhere. He puts his mouth on her sex. He did not do all these things their first night, their only night. He is all fingers and tongue. She thinks being in the dungeon has made him part wild man, biting her thighs and slipping fingers in all the places she never knew they would fit. 

Roslin comes once hard against his shoulder blade shoved against her cheek, as he is thrusting inside her. She is so wet that she thinks Edmure will stop and shame her for being so wanton, so willing, but it seems to make him more excited. He is in his own reverie and when he cries out against her, she feels him let go inside her. Roslin wishes that she gets pregnant this time and everytime he sleeps with her. 

He holds her close and smiles, sleeping peacefully.


	2. Chapter 2

Months pass and she wakes every morning, thankful that he is by her side. 

She wakes next to him and watches the dim sunlight of winter hit his beard in the morning. Perhaps, it is a trick of her mind, but there is less grey in it. She is sure there is more red than when he first came home. It is the good diet, exercise, and sleep he has been getting in Riverrun. When the grey light hits his beard, it turns red in the light, like the color of their son’s hair. Their son who has started to take his first few steps around the castle, the castle he will hold one day. 

Axel’s laugh cheers her husband and Edmure’s color grows stronger. Edmure loves to hold their son in his arms. He will swoop in and pick his son up and kiss his cheeks. To hear Axel laugh in his father’s arms is the sweetest sound to her. She wants to have four or five more children because she loves the joy in her husband's face as he holds Axel close and teaches him about the world. She never saw that joy in her father. Children were like gold or sheep, something to collect and brag about. Roslin is grateful her son will never know how that felt. 

The people of the Riverlands have started coming to Riverrun. Slowly, they drift in with wagons and farm animals. Some of them are laughing and happy, but most are dazed and full of sorrow. There has been much bloodshed in the Riverlands. After winter has passed, there will be time to grieve. The keep is full of animal noises, and noises of babies and mother. During the day, the air is full of voices, working around the castle and at night, drinking men and babies crying. 

Sometimes in the night, she hears the sounds of a wolf pack, howling out in the fields around Riverrun. When she was a child, her mother would say that was a bad omen. Somehow, their howls do not frighten her. In fact, she is comforted by them 

Edmure is getting stronger everyday. He can eat without getting sick and he can almost sleep through an entire night, without becoming restless, without having nightmares. Though in the night, she does not mind him waking her. She is his wife and Roslin likes soothing him, rubbing his back or fetching something warm for him to drink. 

Sometimes, he takes a few men and they go out on horses to survey the land. Sometimes, she goes with him to assess the damage. The Riverlands have much damage. It saddens her and she does not go out with him often. 

There is danger out there, beyond the walls and moat. Roslin knows she is safe behind the walls and moat. 

One night, they hold a winter celebration, bringing a large fir tree into the Great Hall and decorating it with ribbons and popcorn and small animals made of felt and dyed wool. Tom Sevenstrings plays, as well as other musicians who have stumbled into Riverrun. Edmure asks her to dance. Though he stumbles at the start, she finds herself unable to stop smiling at being in his strong arms, against his chest. She saves a ribbon from the tree in her memory chest on top of her wedding cloak and beside a lock of mother’s hair. 

Edmure beds her every night and sometimes in the morning, as well. It is a breathless, burning madness. He talks of how he dreams of her, how he burns for her, how he wants the taste of her on his tongue, the smell of her on his fingers all day. Her ears burn with the words he speaks to her in whispers, but it makes her wet. She must be depraved like her father to be so lustful, but her husband is delighted by it. When she talks back to him, in such low language, he always gets wild and lets go.

Roslin learns from him that mouths are more than for derision and grumbling. They are for laughter and praise and kisses. Hands are more than for work and slapping. They are for touch, comfort and care. 

When he touches her, his hands are steady as they skate the surface of her skin. She marvels at how steady they are and she wordlessly thanks the Mother for healing her husband. 

Life has had some challenges for them. Lord Edmure does not understand how to scrimp and save. She teaches him patiently how to budget and plan. Slowly, he sees that they must not waste because this winter will be long. All must be used frugally. It is easier to be frugal than to go with out later, or worse, watch the small folk starve.

Edmure does not know how to bow or pander to a greater lord or man. Roslin must be more subtle to teach him this skill. After all, his King was a boy and his nephew. Sometimes, if he drinks, he will rage that he will never bow to the Lannisters. His voice heavy with ale, “Let them come with swords in a field, not with deception while my men are drunk and feasting. I will best the Kingslayer.”

She tries to quiet him with kisses and her care. In her face, she will nod and agree, but in her heart, she knows that such talk is pure folly and a bloodbath. It is better to let Queen Cersei worry herself with the new King in the North and the Dragon Queen in Dragonstone. Roslin prays that the Lannisters are kept busy with their new enemies and their old ones.

It gives her time to try to teach him how to avoid the crown or his liege lord, how to be defiant and angry, quietly. After all, her father taught her how to be quietly disobedient, always late, always grumbling, but never enough to send troops and start war. She teaches him what it is like to be one of the many and to avoid attention and accolades, to avoid attention and punishment. After all, she has done this her whole life. 

On a crisp winter day, when the path to the river is encrusted with ice, Roslin and Edmure go out to fish on the ice. He holds her gloved hand in his, as some servants hold their pole and bait. Behind him, the blue of the sky is the same color as his eyes. He teases her that he will catch so many more fish than her, regaling stories of how many fish he has caught on this dock and the sizes, outstanding tales of his ability to catch the largest and best fish in Riverrun.

Roslin smiles and nods, teasing him that whoever catches the most fish will be the winner and the loser will have to clean the best fish and prepare for dinner. Laughing, he agrees to it. She loves the way her husband’s determination looks so much like her son’s face. 

At the end of the hour, it is apparent that Roslin has out fished him. Her bucket is full of more and bigger fish. She has been catching fish off the bridge at the Twins as soon as she could walk. Edmure is upset that his wife has outdown him. 

She kisses him sweetly, “Milord, you are the Silver Trout and I caught you in my net.”

He laughs and she waves the fish away to be cleaned and stored. That night, the Lord and Lady of Riverrun eat roast chicken in their rooms, but the household staff whisper that they ate dinner in their bed.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To L.R.- Peace on your journey, friend....

The snow is falling softly over the Riverlands when Edmure rides out to fight the War in the North.

She is pregnant with their second child. It is not big, a small bump still, but it is there under her skirts, under her skin. Everyday the child grows bigger, never knowing that its father is leaving again. Roslin wonders if this child will ever know his father. She prays fiercely that it will, but she has never been sure if the Seven even listen to prayers. 

He goes North to meet with Olyvar at the Twins and any Riverman who is willing to fight the dead. A new King in the North, Robb’s bastard brother, has sent a letter and there have been strange rumors of a massive undead army coming South. Edmure would not be swayed. He called for his armor and his shield and any bannerman willing to be counted among the defenders of the living. “Ned Stark’s son, bastard or not needs my help, as does Catelyn’s daughter. 

In the night, she spoke in whispers, “What do you owe Jon Snow? He is not your family. He is not your King. Stay with me. We will meet the dead when they cross the Neck. Perhaps, the North can stop them alone.” 

Edmure gathered her in the dark, “Roslin, I must go. They would call me craven. The Knights of the Vale are there, and the men of the North. The Dragon Queen has brought her troops of Unsullied and an entire Dothraki horde. The Rivermen will be counted as one of the brave who stood against the dead. I will lead my men. It is said that even the Kingslayer has left Queen Cersei’s side to fight the dead.”

 

She had begged him not to leave. “It could be a trick. Jaime Lannister would never leave the Queen’s side. Stay with us..”

He had kissed her forehead. “I will leave some of the men here to protect you. I must go for Axel and for this one, and for their children..”

 

On the day he left, she had stood on the bridge of Riverrun and thrown her arms around him in front of all the Houses that gathered there to ride forth in the morning.

“Will you come back?” Roslin asked, in the space of their bodies.

He kissed her with all the softness and aching heat that it felt her heart was being pulled out of her ribcage. His heartbeat fluttered as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and deepened the kiss.  
“My lady..” he said slightly shocked at her forwardness, and slightly pleased at how much she desired him. 

Roslin could not care what his bannermen thought of her, as she gave her husband the most passionate kiss she could muster. To the Seven Hells with all of them. She was Walder Frey’s daughter and she could not give a good shit of what they thought of her. Watching the man she loved ride away to face monsters in the North, she did not think he would be lucky enough to return to her. After all, he was no hero in this story. He was the flopping fish of Riverrun, the boy who could not land an arrow to light his father's floating pyre. He was not Jon Snow or Jaime Lannister, who with their prowess, skill, and luck, they would return victorious. Roslin was not a stupid or a silly girl and she knew how this story would end.

They would bring home her husband’s bones and his men would set fire to them with fiery arrows, as he floated down the river to the afterlife.

“Please don't leave me…”

Lady Roslin Frey Tully watched until her husband and the Rivermen grew small in the distance. She picked her son up and headed back into her castle and brought her people back in with her. She ordered the guard to raise the bridge. Kissing Axel’s reddish hair, she made a silent promise to him. She promised him that they would survive the winter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really like this couple. I really enjoyed writing it. I wish them all the luck on their ability to survive GoT.


End file.
